A bit part of marketing online is email marketing. I’m sure at some point in your career online, you will be sending out some sort of email promotion.

To cut a long story short, a promo email is very much like a mini sales letter.

You draw upon the AIDA system to get them interested and taking action. In most cases, that action will be to visit the sales page for the product you are promoting.

But don’t let that be the benchmark…I’ve heard and witnessed marketers actually give you an order link or order instructions right there in the email body!

But the one thing that is different with an email to a traditional web page sales letter is that you have to get the reader to OPEN the email before you can give your sales pitch – which is often the bigger challenge.

Your email subject line needs to be the trigger.

So how can you trigger someones interest in just one line of text?

Great question and one that baffles many internet marketers.

First let’s look at what NOT to write in your email subject line.

When I was just starting out online, my subject lines really stank.

They were too general.

They didn’t list any benefits.

They blended in with all the other spam emails others were sending.

The result – the trash box or in the bad cases, the SPAM bin.

So here are some tips for writing KILLER subject lines that will get your email open!

Use the reader’s first name in the subject line. Most good auto-responders let you insert the name with a small piece of code.

Don’t beat around the bush fluffing it up – just write what the offer IS! In other words, don’t be misleading and don’t try to put a shiny cover on it. Simply explain what it is your email is about.

Use trigger words like “Free”, “New”, “Limited”, “Exclusive”, “Download” etc. People love getting a good deal or being treated special.

Use some controversy. People want to know the “goss”.

Use Upper Case On The First Letter OF Each Word….just like that. However, DO NOT use ALL CAPS in the entire subject line. It will get spammed by the recipient if it didn’t already by their ISP.

NOTE: Take into account that different lists require different styles and levels of “pitch”. That should be left up to your discretion.

As with many things, practice makes perfect. Write a few different subject lines for each email you send out and then send it to yourself. Have a look and see what it looks like in your inbox.

Some copywriters swear by it. I would have to agree that red is the best color to use on a sales page’s headline.

Here are my justifications for it.

99% of all the online sales letters use red so it’s the safe color to use. You can’t go wrong with red.

Red stands out and you all know that that is what your headline has to do. In contrast, red on white surrounded with black text will stick out like dog’s balls.

There’s only 2 reasons, but for me, that’s all I need.

So are other colors ineffective?

No, I’m not saying that only red must be used in a headline. I have been sucked in to read some great headlines that have been in black and navy blue.

I would suggest that you avoid irregular colors. Pink, purple, yellow, green…you get my drift. You never see these colors because it’s obvious they don’t work. Don’t bother trying them-take my word for it.

A related point I may as well mention is whether or not to use “speech marks” around the headline.

I don’t have any proof to suggest either way is better but I can imagine that in the big picture, it doesn’t matter too much if you use them (“”) or not. It comes down to personal preference.

As for me, I like to use them. I think the headline stands out a little more with speech marks.